The Un-Sired Bond
by SunThorn19
Summary: It was never about the sire bond. It was about something much, much stronger. My take on what should have happened in 4x09! This is very much a Delena fan oneshot! Enjoy!


_**The Un-Sired Bond**_

"I'm setting you free, Elena. This is what I want. This is what will make me happy." The words flowed from Damon's lips in a sure, cool voice. From the outside, he looked like he was in total control. Doing the right thing by his brother, and by Elena. On the outside, he looked like this wasn't the must soul crushing, gut wrenching experience of his existence.

For months, Damon had been in love with Elena. He feel in love with her kind heart and gentle spirit. He longed to understand her unique humanity. He earned to heal her pain, mend her heart, and bring her back to the Elena she once was. He wanted those deep brown eyes to look up at him with the love they held for Stefan. He wanted her to run into _his _arms. Damon wanted every last piece of her; because he loved every last thing about her.

And for the last couple of days…he had it. She wanted him. She made love to him. She told him that her feelings for him had grown so strong that she couldn't hide it anymore. That those feelings were so strong that she broke up with Stefan because it wasn't fair to him anymore. She told him how much she wanted to be with him, and she meant every word. He held her in his arms, he watched her face glow with happiness. It was like perfection. Like the purest, and most honest joy he had ever felt in his entire life. Damon…was happy.

But it was all because of a damned sire bond.

The strength of her feelings. Her devotion to him. Her conviction that they belonged together all came from a sire bond that neither of them had any control over. And as much as Damon yearned to be selfish, to be the beast inside himself and take what he wanted….Damon just wasn't capable of being selfish with Elena. She deserved the best in him…and so that's what he gave her. He set her free, as he promised Stefan he would do.

And now that golden joy would be gone forever.

She would realize that her feelings were only a result of the sire bond. The guilt would settle in for their night together. She would regret everything that happened between them…she would regret him. The thought made Damon feel like someone stuck a white hot poker in his chest as he waited for Elena to come to these realizations.

Elena looked up at Damon, her expression almost completely unreadable. She knew what Damon had done. He'd warned her the night before what this moment would look like. When he set her free. He'd tell her to leave, and that it would make him happy. And then the effects of the sire bond would be gone.

Slowly, Elena raised both her hands and gently placed them on Damon's cheeks. His eyes closed at her touch, and she felt his muscles tense. He was waiting for her to break his heart. To tell him that her love for him was nothing but a product of the sire bond and her undying love for Stefan had returned. That her happiness was fake, and that she regretted making love to him. That she didn't savor the feel of his hands on her skin…that she didn't burn in every inch of her body for his kiss. He was waiting for her to shatter his happiness.

"It wasn't the sire bond." Elena whispered as tears formed in her dark eyes.

Damon's eyes widened, and he stared at her in disbelief. This had to be a misunderstanding. She was just trying to make him feel better. She was just trying to avoid breaking his heart again. The sire bond was broken…those feelings had to be gone. He shook his head slowly, barely daring to breathe.

"I love you, Damon." Elena whispered, her tone strong and sure despite its quietness. Her eyes left no doubt; she meant every word that she was saying. Her feelings were not the result of the sure bond. They weren't an illusion she dreamt up to please Damon. She loved him, and she wasn't going anywhere.

Tears formed in Damon's own eyes as he stared at Elena in sheer shock. Her words were everything he ever wanted to hear…but that made them all the more unbelievable. After a life of disappointment and pain, Damon wasn't prone to believe the best. The two women he'd loved in his life chose Stefan…he wasn't the brother that these things were said to. Yet here Elena was, looking up at him with love clear in her beautiful eyes. "Can you say that again?" Damon whispered back, his hands finding their way to her waist, pulling her closer as if to snatch the words from her lips.

Elena smiled, a bright, joyous smile that can only be found on the lips of someone in love, "Damon Salvatore," she said slowly, her thumbs stroking his cheeks, "I love you. I'm completely un-sired, and I couldn't love you more if I tried." She promised in a soft tone.

Sire bond or no sire bond, Elena's love didn't come from a bond formed by vampire blood. She had loved Damon long before Matt's truck flew off the side of Wickery Bridge. The only thing that had truly changed between them was that Elena had been shocked from the half-life she was leading. It was like she saw the world through new eyes; and those new eyes finally allowed her recognize Damon as her true love.

Elena's love for Damon had nothing to do with heightened emotions. It was all about her heart finally realizing its match.

"I love you, too." Damon said in a voice riddled with emotion before his lips crashed down on hers.

After one hundred and sixty seven years, Damon finally found a home for his heart. It came in the form of an un-sired bond; true love.

**XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO**

**Okay, I was feeling romantic and had to let out all my Delena love! I've been so disappointed that the TVD writer's have been trying to sabotage Delena before they even get a chance, so this is my gift to all of my fellow Delena lovers. I don't believer for a second that the sire bond is what's between them. It's love, and I've never seen either of them happier then when they were together! **

**This was just a oneshot (for now anyway), but I hope you guys enjoyed it! :D Thank you so much for reading and I'd love to hear what you thought in the reviews!**

**Love Always, Cilla :D**


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